


A highly individualized notion of ethics

by Carmilla



Category: Exiles - Melanie Rawn
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-23
Updated: 2013-12-23
Packaged: 2018-01-05 15:49:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1095801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carmilla/pseuds/Carmilla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One way or another, Sarra always gets what she wants.  But she still has a lot to learn.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A highly individualized notion of ethics

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kerlin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kerlin/gifts).



“Tarise?” Sarra asked in her brightest voice, the one that always meant trouble.

Tarise glanced down to hide a grin. It was already obvious that Sarra was going to be a formidable agent one day, and after that, Saints willing, an even more formidable politician. At fourteen, though, she still had some work to do on her acting skills. That particular tone had a badly-concealed edge of steel to it; Sarra was trying the diplomatic route first, but she meant to get whatever it was that she wanted by any means necessary.

“Yes, _Domna_?”

Tarise was pleased to note that her own voice gave away none of her amusement. It could never hurt to brush up on art of deception. In the coming few years Sarra would unwittingly be depending on Tarise's ability to play the chatty, carefree young maid. If her charge ever caught a hint that Tarise was more than she appeared to be she would never stop until she knew the whole truth, and for the moment the truth was dangerous to her.

“Tarise, Lady Agatine must employ some reform school boys, musn't she? Since she set the place up herself? And you know the household inside out, so you must know who they are.”

Sarra's skills in the art of subtle flattery obviously needed some perfecting too, but Tarise was willing to indulge her for at least as long as it took to find out what the girl was up to.

“Yes, there are usually a couple of them on the household staff. Most of them don't stay very long – Lord Orlin prefers that they have the skills to earn an independent living if they want to. A couple of years' service here and a good reference from my lady gives a man a lot of options for future employment.”

“I need to meet one.”

“What would you need to do that for?”

“My tutor wants me to gain a more practical understanding of how Lady Agatine runs the hold. He says her charitable innovations are particularly interesting, especially the school.” Her voice took on the thin, reedy pitch of _Domni_ Jeyrim. “Boys who turn to crime at a young age are often orphaned, abandoned – motherless! Lacking the most important of civilizing influences! What better way to give them a new direction and purpose than to place them under the symbolic care and patronage of the Lady of the hold, who is in some ways a mother to us all?” Sarra giggled. “I think he's in love with Agatine, don't you? Disgraceful, especially since she's so devoted to her husband. Anyway, I'd like to talk to one about his life, and the school. I've promised _Domni_ Jeyrim an essay and I think he'd appreciate me doing some real, first-hand research.”

Impressive. If Tarise hadn't already been on her guard, there was a good chance she would have been taken in. That giggle hadn't sounded practised at all. Nonetheless, Sarra had a way to go yet, and Tarise had an aura of omniscience to maintain.

“ _Domna_ Liwellan, we both know perfectly well he did no such thing. Your assignment for these next couple of days was a set of algebra problems – which, by the way, I happen to know you haven't finished yet, though you could do them in your sleep. Now, what is it that you really want?”

Sarra flushed a little but clearly decided denial wasn't worth the effort. She spoke to her shoes.

“I need someone to teach me lockpicking.” She took a deep breath, and looked up, dark eyes flashing. “I'm bored, Tarise. I need something to learn besides hold management and deportment and history that the faithful _Domni_ Jeyrim and I both know never happened. And do you know, the Senison Bloods have a copy of Miriemme Agvenir's treatise on the life of Captal Bekke just sitting in a case in an upstairs hallway, like an ornament? It's been banned from circulation for twenty-five years! And I was staying there for nearly a week, being very diplomatic to a number of very dull and unpleasant people, and I couldn't read it!” She was pacing now. “So I need someone who can teach me how to get into display cases and private reading rooms. Otherwise I swear, I'm just going to try to learn on my own, and if I have to practice on Lady Piera's jewel case the next time she makes one of her thoroughly disapproving visits to us, so much the better.”

This time Tarise couldn't help it; she laughed out loud.

“ _Domna_ Sarra, it's as well you confided in me. None of the reform boys can pick locks.”

“What?”

“You thought that every street child learned every one of Pierga's arts? Deil was muscle for a gang, Fernand was the most wretchedly unsuccessful pickpocket Advocate Trayos had ever seen, and poor Kelos would have been scandalized if you'd so much as mentioned the subject – his mother asked the school to take him in when he was twelve, so that she could tale a position she'd been offered in Dindenshir. He's a thoroughly respectable lad, and not one willing to be led astray by highborn ladies.”

“Highborn - !” Sarra began, before laughter overtook her outrage. “Oh, very well, I suppose I deserved that.” She flopped down on her bed. “But Tarise, in that case, whoever can I get to teach me?”

Tarise hesitated; but after all, many of the families Sarra visited didn't value their libraries much at all, let alone guard them. She could probably avoid being caught. And there were a lot of things she could be doing that would be more trouble – delving for answers in the past was much safer than looking for them in the present.

“What if I find you a set of lockpicks, and a book, or a pamphlet, or something, to tell you how to use them? Will you be satisfied, and promise to stay away from any visiting jewel boxes?”

“You know I wouldn't really -” it seemed to dawn on Sarra quite suddenly that she had been made a serious offer. “I mean, yes, I'm sure that would be perfectly adequate. I suppose I'll just have to buy my own jewel boxes to practice on. But Tarise, where would you find something like that?”

Tarise smiled.

“Oh, come now, _Domna_. Even lady's maids must have one or two secrets of their own.”

~

Four months later, Tarise found a book under Sarra's bed; a history of Lenfell in the first two centuries after the Waste War by an author she'd never even heard of. She grinned, and left a note in it, sticking out like a bookmark, that read 'Tidy me up!'. Sarra must have got better at hiding them after that, because she never found another one.

**Author's Note:**

> This is more 'Tarise being awesome with Sarra being awesome-in-training'. Hope that's okay!


End file.
